Slugterra: Redemption
by Literaturefangirl
Summary: Incarcerated and forced into doing menial labour, former Underlord Holt wonders why Master Lian has put him up to this. But perhaps she has something better in store for him.
1. Chapter 1

Manual labour.

That was the punishment that former Underlord Holt had been sentenced to for his crimes against the Eastern Caverns. He thought he'd gotten off easy with a simple imprisonment in an Imperial Palace's cells, but suddenly spending the rest of his days locked in a cell seemed a lot more appealing than having to mine Auroris crystals all day!

Even when she was no longer under the Emperor's influence, Master Lian continued to play the role of the one inflicting punishment on Holt. So rather than staying as a useless inmate in a cell, it was Master Lian's idea to find a way for Holt to earn his keep. By making him work!

Holt's sentence was narrowed to two options. It was either working in the mines to provide crystals for the caverns or working in the palace kitchens. But since Holt was not a trustworthy person and had proven his ineptitude countless times, Master Lian had decided that the former lackey of the Emperor would not be entrusted with food preparation duties.

"So you're the new recruit!" The lead miner called out Holt as he entered the dimly lit mine.

"Regrettably, _yes_." Holt answered, with a voice that made it obvious that he didn't want to be there.

"Welcome to the team! This should help you get started." The miner tossed a pickaxe at Holt from a short distance, trusting that he would catch it.

Despite being surprised by the miner's sudden action, Holt quickly reached out to catch the oncoming object before it could fall to the ground. But like so many previous tasks, he bungled that one too and despite catching the pickaxe with both hands, Holt then subsequently managed to drop the pickaxe, handle first on his foot.

" _Aaargh!_ " Holt howled in pain and clutched his injured foot, hopping on one foot to stabilize himself, failing miserably. Unable to keep his balance, Holt fell backwards and landed on his rear end, much to the amusement of the other miners.

"Help me, you _fools_!" Holt cried out to the miners collectively laughing at him, furious that his misfortune had entertained them.

"What's his problem?" One of the female miners asked, as she entered the scene.

"He dropped a pickaxe on his foot."

"A rookie mistake."

"And on his first day too!" One of the miners added.

"Thanks for the laugh, mate. We needed that!" The lead miner smiled and helped Holt to his feet. He then turned to the woman who had inquired about Holt and introduced him to her, "Holt, this is Ruby, she's going to show you how we run things around here."

" _Charming_." Holt sneered. Unable to resist making a sarcastic remark.

Once they had chosen a rock to extract crystals from, Holt lifted his pickaxe and apathetically struck one of the crystals with the least amount of effort possible. To nobody's surprise, it didn't even budge.

"You're going to have to hit it harder than that, if you want to get the crystals out!" Ruby advised him.

"OK then, how would _you_ do it?" Holt admitted defeat and asked her.

"Like _this_!" Ruby swung the pickaxe and struck the crystal down hard, dislodging it from the rock.

" _Impressive._ " Holt reluctantly muttered.

As the rest of the day passed, Ruby found herself observing Holt as he worked. So did the other miners. Who could blame them? Whether he was calling people fools and imbeciles, or whether he was slowly pushing a trolley with a slouching posture, Holt's lazy and cantankerous efforts were strangely entertaining.

"Alright lads, time to go home!" The lead miner called out, signalling the end of their shift, to the delight of the miners.

"At last! The moment I've been waiting for has finally arrived!" Holt declared ominously and then dropped to his knees groaning and collapsed on the ground, flat on his face. After a hard day like that, Holt hoped that Master Lian would have a change of heart and reconsider his sentence. And for his sake, that it would happen soon…


	2. Chapter 2

Sweeping the palace floors.

Was this really a job befitting a former underlord? Perhaps not, but it was one the few jobs that he had been entrusted with for now. When it wasn't sweeping, it was peeling and cutting vegetables. Not terribly stimulating, but a much more lenient alternative to slaving away during the hours of the day mining for crystals.

And yet, Holt felt as though his spirit was being smothered. When he was an Underlord, his ambitions were allowed to flourish with the knowledge that had the opportunity to attain a position of great power and affluence, but now it felt like he had been given the responsibility of menial tasks for the sole purpose of crushing his spirit. But perhaps he was being too hard on himself. He had plenty of time to do that as he swept the vast halls of the Imperial Palace.

Most of the time, the palace didn't often boast of any visitors. Another part of his punishment he mused. Isolation. But when the palace _did_ have visitors, in times of festivities, Holt had plenty to do. This was due, in part to the change that followed the Emperor's defeat. No longer was the palace his personal domain. It was now a venue for celebrations! Where the farmers of the land could exhibit their seasonal harvests, where important announcements could be made and where lavish feasts could be hosted. A shining beacon of Peach Blossom Spring Cavern. But all those virtues were wasted on Holt. To him it was just 'the place where he worked' and 'the place I have to clean up after.'

But Holt's efforts were not in vain, because someone was keeping an eye on him. When she wasn't teaching students how to sling, Master Lian would sometimes observe Holt as he worked hard, day after day. Not even disputing what he was given to do. What she concluded from this was, that when given the choice, the man would choose the easiest option to keep himself safe, even at the cost of being subservient.

If Peach Blossom Spring Cavern was to continue to prosper, then a large number of skilled fighters would be needed to defend it against threats that would surely come once again. If that outcome was to be realized, then even men such as Holt would need to be recruited to defend it and that would require earning his loyalty.

But Holt didn't know that it would involve trekking to the summit of one of the tallest spires in the Eastern Caverns!

"I need your help to get something up there." She had told him. Another pointless task delegated to him. Only this time it came with the burden of carrying heavy luggage. Still he didn't complain… much. By the time they had reached the summit, Holt was reduced to a wheezy mess. Having finally reached the top, Holt let the heavy bag he was carrying drop to the ground, while he attempted to catch his breath.

"Tell me Holt, have you ever seen a view of Peach Blossom Spring Cavern quite like this one?"

"No! Because I don't make it a habit of climbing tall mountains with heavy luggage." Holt retorted after turning around to face her.

"Jest all you want, but even you must admit that the view is beautiful." Master Lian deflected his sarcasm.

"It's… alright." He admitted, after some thought. But it was not what he truly felt. Master Lian was right. The view of the village with peach blossom petals wafting through the air, at one of the highest points in the cavern, was indeed beautiful. It made his heart soar, but it also confused him.

"Master Lian…" He said carefully. "I don't understand what we're doing here."

"Sit down and I'll show you." Master Lian invited him to sit with her. She had set out a place to eat with an oriental rug and refreshments on top of it.

"What is this?"

"Food. That you prepared." She answered as a matter of fact, making Holt's face transform from that of bafflement to astonishment.

"I see that look on your face. You thought that it was simply a punishment." She remarked.

"Yes…"

"But even punishments can yield rewards." She reflected.

"What are you trying to tell me?" Holt asked, getting frustrated with all these cryptic messages.

"You've worked hard these past few months Holt. Don't you think it's time for something better?" Master Lian asked, finally making herself clear.

"Are you… promoting me?!" Holt asked. He couldn't believe what Lian had just proposed to him. He hadn't expected his punishments to lead to anything and now she was giving him a second chance.

"Yes, I am." She acknowledged.

"When the Eastern Caverns are threatened and are in need of slingers, can we count on you?" She posed the crucial question. Suddenly putting Holt on the spot.

"Y-yes! I won't fail you Lady—" Holt blurted out in a panic, incorrectly calling her by her former title.

"Good." She smiled.


End file.
